Consoles to go 'the way of the dodo,' says Spielberg

  • Posted May 20th, 2009 at 10:54 EDT by Mike Harradence
  • 60 Comments

Movie legend Steven Spielberg has predicted that gaming consoles are on their way out, believing 3D gaming and virtual reality will step forward and become the "new platform for our gaming future."

Speaking during an interview with The Guardian, Spielberg said that traditional gaming platforms, just like that of old "videogame parlours,” will inevitably go “the way of the dodo bird.”

"Now we're all playing at home and someday we'll be playing directly on our TV sets, bypassing all of the platforms," he commented.

Fresh from his work on the second Bloom Blox game with Electronic Arts, Spielberg also outlined his expectations for the future, stating, "In the short term I would love to start seeing 3D games developed where with a good pair of glasses we get a real three-dimensional experience in front of an appropriate monitor that is designed just for 3D.”

"And after that, will certainly be virtual reality, which just like 3D came and went in the 1950s, and now it's here to stay in movies."
 
"I really think virtual reality, which experimentally came and went in the eighties, is going to be redeveloped, just like 3D is being redeveloped today, and that's going to be the new platform for our gaming future,” the director added.

Spielberg also divulged that he’s a PC gamer at heart, though also has a crack at PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 from time to time: "I get more into the microphysics of gaming, especially on the PC. I'm closer to the screen, I look for detail, I notice things more easily. The Wii platform which I adore is more of a macro experience, you know.”

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What are your thoughts?

  1. sicstar

    • 11:03am BST - May 20th, 2009

    its like saying in the year 2000 we will have hover cars.  it never happened.  And I dont see this happening any time soon.

  2. Chino2Jesus

    • 11:03am BST - May 20th, 2009

     Well his stance on the Wii says it all. Fail. I do love Jurassic Park though.

  3. mickice

    • 11:11am BST - May 20th, 2009

    Infact 3D movies are gonna go the way of the Dodo, with the way Uncharted 2 is looking why waste money on some silly 3D film?

    SONY has finally given us what they promised so many years ago, Pixar like graphics.

  4. Versus

    • 11:15am BST - May 20th, 2009

     Spielberg do what you do best and make your movies, and let Devs do what they do best and make games.

  5. Stoffinator | Stoffinator

    • 11:18am BST - May 20th, 2009

    Much like his carreer huh?

  6. kopkiwi | Kopkiwi

    • 11:19am BST - May 20th, 2009

    Stick to movies Steven. Stick.To.Movies.

  7. fleinn | fleinn

    • 11:21am BST - May 20th, 2009

    I predict(!) that in the future, celebrities will receive legal restraining orders whenever they insist on speaking publically about issues they don't have a clue about..

  8. LegendaryAim | LegendaryAim

    • 11:21am BST - May 20th, 2009

     Why would a MOVIE guy know anything about Gaming?

  9. IIIKAGEIII | IIIKAGEIII

    • 11:27am BST - May 20th, 2009

     yeah because steven speilberg knows what gamers want... thats why he made boom blox. please!

    stick to making your crappy movies. your gaming cred is non exsistent. 

  10. radgamer420 | mistercrow

    • 11:29am BST - May 20th, 2009

    Maybe Speiberg will go the way of the do do.

  11. Varsh | UK-Varsh

    • 11:31am BST - May 20th, 2009

    @4

    You do realise that when films are made a lot of the technology is used in games right? Vice-versa too. He also said that he's a PC gamer.

  12. O_G_H

    • 11:42am BST - May 20th, 2009

    "...way of the dodo"?  Like his talent?  Hey, I saw Indy 4 and war of the Worlds, man.  James Cameron took your place.

  13. scorpius45 | scorpius45

    • 11:44am BST - May 20th, 2009

    The problem I've got with 3D glasses is that due to problems with my eyesight, things viewed through 3D glasses just look like a flat screen.

  14. Dave-The-Rave | Dave-The-Rave

    • 11:57am BST - May 20th, 2009

    It is inevitable this is what the gaming industry is aiming for eventually. The question is how long will it take?

  15. mcav | mcav

    • 12:01pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Stick to making films Stevie...

  16. re5fan

    • 12:05pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Earlier this year, Sony revealed and demoed 3D technology running on the PlayStation 3 with three separate titles (MotorStorm, WipEout HD, and GT5 Prologue). According to SCEE President David Reeves, the "PlayStation 3 is a link to 3D," adding even more value to the system.

    "PS3 is a link to 3D as it is to HD and flatscreen TVs, which is why three HD games were shown at CES. You’re also going to find a number of 3D films coming out in Aug/Sept. But is there convergence in 3D technology – is there confidence? I don’t see it. So we may dip our toe in the water, not this year but possibly next," said Reeves.

  17. Limmex

    • 12:08pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    interesting points, lets just wait and see...

  18. Beast of Bourbon | Azrael666

    • 12:16pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Yeah, 3d googles for special "3d TVs".... all this in a world where most people don´t even know and care what HD means ;)

    And even if virtual reality was the way to go, some box has to create this worlds.... or are they supposed to just fly out of the gamebox? hands off the "C" Stevie!

  19. no1kevlin | no1kevlin

    • 12:23pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    "gaming consoles are on their way out, ... 3D gaming and virtual reality will step forward and become the "new platform for our gaming future".

     

    I've heard all this before. Is he living in 1990?  What next, another Lawnmowerman movie?  :D

  20. DarkVincent07 | DarkVincent07

    • 12:30pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    People are always gonna love their consoles. No matter what

  21. AdamDW | AdamDW

    • 12:40pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Stick to making films mate...

  22. higgos22

    • 1:00pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    yeh um this guy cbf write ur name u know that aint gonna happen for a really long time

  23. Staticneuron | Staticneuron

    • 1:01pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Is he trying to fail in every catagory? Bloom box is definetly not the pinicle of  gaming and the last indiana jones killed my dreams.

  24. Stevie | XxSteviexX

    • 1:45pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Spielbergs high quality movies have already gone the way of the dodo

  25. richkaos | richkaos

    • 2:13pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Head the word of your alien creation and...........Gooo hhoommmeee

  26. iberianpower

    • 2:17pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    So 3D gaming and virtual reality are the way to go ...

     

    And what will run that ?A console most probably .

     

    Stop saying idiocies Spielberg ,you dont have a clue.

  27. Sufi

    • 2:23pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    I really honestly thought that steven was more intelligent than this...

  28. ttech10 | Scheller

    • 2:24pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    At first I thought it was going to be a dumb analyst saying this.

     

    Then I clicked the link and found out it was someone even dumber than an analyst. Just be quiet, Steve.

  29. [valium] | valium018

    • 2:25pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    will go the way of the dodo?

    like his movies have?

  30. neoxthexone | neoxthexone123

    • 2:34pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    @9 Crappy movies?.............GTFO

  31. lordAlucard | Sympozium_666

    • 3:41pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    You know it will never happen as long till the black lord Micro$oft end there cruel dream of greed

  32. veyron | bromic

    • 3:49pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    You have to admit  that the "TV"  now ~80 years old is the becoming the bottle neck

    Some form of 3D visual (without silly googles) has to be the next break through,

  33. Alpha2

    • 3:49pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Yes mr Speilberg and we'll be playing them on MARS where the light makes the virtual reality experience feel all the more real! You're a movie producer invovled in creating fantasy ideas that can never occur realistically in life dont pretend to be an industry analyst, we have enough of those idiots as it is.

  34. iceveiled

    • 4:05pm BST - May 20th, 2009

     Less prophecizing on the future of consoles and more making phone calls to find out why Saving Private Ryan isn't on Blu Ray yet. Kthxbye. 

  35. liquidus118 | liquidus118

    • 4:31pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Virtual Reality is the logical next step I suppose, but I don't want it, if I want to play something physically I'll go and play a sport or something, not be inside flapping around like an idiot, I prefer using a controller.

    You could argue that a controller is even more natural than virtual reality, because when you are using a controller you aren't conciously thinking, in a shooting game for arguements sake "I need to move the analogue stick forwards and then press x to take cover, and then hold the analogue stick up and hold R1 to shoot", if you've played games for a while you don't think that you think "I need to run to that cover and shoot the guy". From what I remember it has been shown that, if a game reacts quick enough and feels natural enough, your brain considers it an extension of your body, games like Mirrors Edge use this very well.

    So please, leave movement-controlling out of my consoles, just give me a controller, a good TV, and a fun game and that's all I ask.

  36. IceShade | Ice_Shade

    • 4:31pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Why are you making a story about what some movie writer says about videogames? What makes him experienced in any way to discuss videogames? For Christ's sake, he owns a Wii. Not only is this a useless article, it's also poorly written. The entire PSU staff never ceases to amaze me with their epic failures.

  37. markwesker

    • 4:32pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    well considering gaming now makes more money then the film industry i say he`s just plain wrong.3D gaming/films is just flavour of the month ,its been done be4 and the same will happen again,people cant be bothered with it.

    The only thing that will stop consoles is when real 3D happens like holodecks in star trek,now thats the ultimate and it will happen just might take 50-100 years lol.

  38. daniels02

    • 4:50pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Actually Veyron they are a little over 83 years old....  On January 23, 1926, John Logie Baird (of Scotland) gave the world's first public demonstration of a mechanical television apparatus to approximately 40 members of the Royal Institution at his laboratory on Frith Street. These were images of living human faces, not outlines or silhouettes, with complete tonal gradations of light and shade.

     

    http://www.tvhistory.tv/pre-1935.htm

  39. porkins

    • 5:00pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    I think the problem is that he assumes some type of embrace of this technology by joe public because that is what it would take to make tv manufactuers include this technology in thier hardware. The future may be 3D gaming and virtual reality, however there will always be some type of "console" or add on to make this possible.

  40. bilbo_bobbins | bilbo_bobbins

    • 5:21pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Spielberg should go and create some more crap movies instead of guessing how the gaming market will go. Personally I can't see this 3D movement happening anytime soon, or at least within the ps3 years. Even the next thing to come after will struggle with anything thats decent.

  41. ryuken

    • 5:21pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    what a puntz, indy4 was so bad I hate you steve I hate you. and george lucus, you guys suck

  42. psychotoe

    • 5:55pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    I agree with #1

  43. Overcast | Gamenificent

    • 6:30pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Isn't that adorable? Non gamers are so ignorant as to what is actually happening in the actual gaming community. This guy is about as much of a gamer as my grandmother.

  44. kalitos

    • 6:54pm BST - May 20th, 2009

     I would sertanly like virtual reality games come to light sooner than later. That is the future.

     

  45. Intervention

    • 7:06pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    They've been talking about virtual reality since video games came out. Anyone remember The Lawnmower Man or Tron. It's still not here. Spielberg hasn't made a good movie since about that time either.

  46. Smithy2306

    • 7:14pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    yeah whatever, that will be way off

  47. KZ3000

    • 7:26pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    Virtual Reality sounds lame....

    Spilberg dont speak about videogames if you dont know much about it.

    The consoles will endure at least in all 21th century.

    Without competion there isnt many good games.

    And nicelly said 10! XD

  48. rickuto

    • 7:57pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    he also said anime would never become big in america...

    so me listening to him is not likely

     

  49. Ryuuchi10 | Ryuuchi10

    • 7:58pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    I'm sorry Mr. Spielberg but virtual reality is waaaaay too long for us to come because I think we're too slow of developing new technologies.

  50. Acid-Hippie2007 | Acid-Hippie2007

    • 8:13pm BST - May 20th, 2009

    lol

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